Esports is a growing phenomenon, with millions entertained worldwide watching professional gamers battle it out to win the latest championship.
Whilst esport players have the potential to earn eye-watering amounts in the tournaments themselves, they also have the opportunity to cash in on social media through sponsored posts.
We have investigated the highest earning esport players, shortlisted the players with the greatest Instagram earning potential and highlighted the top tournament pools worldwide so you know the ones to watch, if you’re new to the scene.
Who are the highest earning esport players?
The highest earning esport player worldwide is N0tail (John Sundtein). The professional gamer has earnt over $7 million throughout his career, with his highest payday earned from competing in Dota 2 during ‘The International 2019’.
Ranking in second is JerAx (Jesse Vainikka) who has earned just short of $6.5 million over his gaming career.
Taking third place is ana (Anathan Pham), who has cashed in over $6 million as a professional gamer.
How much are esports players earning compared to national salaries?
The best esports players are earning an average of 104 times their respective country’s national average salary, with Pakistan’s Sumail Hassan earning over 1,000 times the country’s national average wage.
Highest earning esport players worldwide
| Ranking | Country | Player Name | Player ID | Highest Paying Game | Total Earnings | Earnings comparative to country’s national average (times) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Denmark | Johan Sundstein | N0tail | Dota 2 | $7,184,163 | 90x |
| 2 | Finland | Jesse Vainikka | JerAx | Dota 2 | $6,486,624 | 124x |
| 3 | Australia | Anathan Pham | ana | Dota 2 | $6,024,412 | 123x |
| 4 | France | Sébastien Debs | Ceb | Dota 2 | $5,887,343 | 137x |
| 5 | Finland | Topias Taavitsainen | Topson | Dota 2 | $5,722,675 | 110x |
| 6 | Russian Federation | Yaroslav Naidenov | Miposhka | Dota 2 | $5,626,952 | 405x |
| 7 | Ukraine | Ilya Mulyarchuk | Yatoro | Dota 2 | $5,398,554 | 742x |
| 8 | Russian Federation | Magomed Khalilov | Collapse | Dota 2 | $5,394,792 | 388x |
| 9 | Ukraine | Miroslaw Kolpakov | Mira | Dota 2 | $5,380,580 | 740x |
| 10 | Germany | Kuro Takhasomi | KuroKy | Dota 2 | $5,291,423 | 91x |
| 11 | Jordan | Amer Al-Barkawi | Miracle- | Dota 2 | $4,889,085 | 179x |
| 12 | Finland | Lasse Urpalainen | Matumbaman | Dota 2 | $4,873,086 | 93x |
| 13 | Bulgaria | Ivan Ivanov | MinD_ContRoL | Dota 2 | $4,701,435 | 212x |
| 14 | Estonia | Clement Ivanov | Puppey | Dota 2 | $4,313,473 | 175x |
| 15 | Lebanon | Maroun Merhej | GH | Dota 2 | $4,294,388 | 409x |
| 16 | Sweden | Ludwig Wåhlberg | Zai | Dota 2 | $4,292,756 | 92x |
| 17 | Russian Federation | Alexander Khertek | TORONTOTOKYO | Dota 2 | $4,260,959 | 307x |
| 18 | Pakistan | Sumail Hassan | SumaiL | Dota 2 | $4,012,889 | 1145x |
| 19 | China | Zhang Yiping | y' | Dota 2 | $3,932,492 | 78x |
| 20 | China | Wang Chunyu | Ame | Dota 2 | $3,912,904 | 77x |
| 21 | China | Zhang Ruida | Faith_bian | Dota 2 | $3,847,232 | 76x |
| 22 | United States of America | Kyle Giersdorf | Bugha | Fortnite | $3,648,567 | 61x |
| 23 | China | Lu Yao | Somnus | Dota 2 | $3,311,116 | 65x |
| 24 | Republic of North Macedonia | Martin Sazdov | Saksa | Dota 2 | $3,151,808 | 253x |
| 25 | China | Xu Linsen | fy | Dota 2 | $3,104,046 | 61x |
| 26 | United States of America | Saahil Arora | UNiVeRsE | Dota 2 | $3,057,238 | 51x |
| 27 | United States of America | Peter Dager | ppd | Dota 2 | $3,029,331 | 51x |
| 28 | Poland | Michał Jankowski | Nisha | Dota 2 | $2,945,537 | 129x |
| 29 | Israel | Tal Aizik | Fly | Dota 2 | $2,817,651 | 66x |
| 30 | Sweden | Gustav Magnusson | s4 | Dota 2 | $2,749,195 | 59x |
| 31 | Canada | Artour Babaev | Arteezy | Dota 2 | $2,690,870 | 43x |
| 32 | United States of America | Clinton Loomis | Fear | Dota 2 | $2,564,313 | 43x |
| 33 | China | Hu Liangzhi | KaKa | Dota 2 | $2,548,664 | 50x |
| 34 | Denmark | Andreas Nielsen | Cr1t | Dota 2 | $2,459,283 | 31x |
| 35 | Israel | Neta Shapira | 33 | Dota 2 | $2,426,257 | 57x |
| 36 | United States of America | Wu Jingjun | Sneyking | Dota 2 | $2,414,383 | 41x |
| 37 | Jordan | Yazied Jaradat | YapzOr | Dota 2 | $2,297,191 | 84x |
| 38 | Romania | Aliwi Omar | w33 | Dota 2 | $2,294,325 | 107x |
| 39 | Austria | David Wang | Aqua | Fortnite | $2,192,075 | 54x |
| 40 | Denmark | Peter Rasmussen | dupreeh | Counter-Strike: Global Offensive | $2,190,664 | 27x |
| 41 | Canada | Kurtis Ling | Aui_2000 | Dota 2 | $2,073,583 | 33x |
| 42 | Slovakia | Oliver Lepko | Skiter | Dota 2 | $2,063,347 | 83x |
| 43 | Ukraine | Roman Fominok | Resolut1on | Dota 2 | $2,062,483 | 284x |
| 44 | Russian Federation | Roman Kushnarev | RAMZES666 | Dota 2 | $2,055,666 | 148x |
| 45 | Malaysia | Yap Jian Wei | xNova | Dota 2 | $2,055,586 | 121x |
| 46 | China | Yang, Shenyi | Chalice | Dota 2 | $2,039,422 | 40x |
| 47 | Russian Federation | Aleksey Berezin | Solo | Dota 2 | $2,026,798 | 146x |
| 48 | Germany | Leon Kirilin | Nine | Dota 2 | $2,020,261 | 35x |
| 49 | China | Li Peng | iceice | Dota 2 | $2,005,165 | 40x |
| 50 | Denmark | Andreas Højsleth | Xyp9x | Counter-Strike: Global Offensive | $2,002,955 | 25x |
| 51 | Denmark | Nicolai Reedtz | dev1ce | Counter-Strike: Global Offensive | $1,994,654 | 25x |
| 52 | China | Chu Zeyu | Shadow | Dota 2 | $1,982,031 | 39x |
| 53 | China | Zhou Yang | bLink | Dota 2 | $1,960,762 | 39x |
| 54 | United States of America | Harrison Chang | psalm | Fortnite | $1,959,500 | 33x |
| 55 | China | Zhao Zixing | XinQ | Dota 2 | $1,934,685 | 38x |
| 56 | Denmark | Emil Reif | Magisk | Counter-Strike: Global Offensive | $1,881,924 | 23x |
| 57 | Denmark | Lukas Rossander | gla1ve | Counter-Strike: Global Offensive | $1,879,967 | 23x |
| 58 | China | Zhang Ning | xiao8 | Dota 2 | $1,877,435 | 37x |
| 59 | Denmark | Finn Andersen | karrigan | Counter-Strike: Global Offensive | $1,872,603 | 23x |
| 60 | Australia | Damien Chok | kpii | Dota 2 | $1,865,068 | 38x |
| 61 | Malaysia | Cheng Jin Xiang | NothingToSay | Dota 2 | $1,851,190 | 109x |
| 62 | Malaysia | Zheng Yeik Nai | MidOne | Dota 2 | $1,851,031 | 36x |
| 63 | Singapore | Daryl Koh Pei Xiang | iceiceice | Dota 2 | $1,812,855 | 35x |
| 64 | United States of America | Shane Cotton | EpikWhale | Fortnite | $1,786,887 | 30x |
| 65 | China | Zeng Hongda | Faith | Dota 2 | $1,764,521 | 35x |
| 66 | China | Xie Junhao | Super | Dota 2 | $1,764,310 | 35x |
| 67 | China | Chen Zhihao | Hao | Dota 2 | $1,761,647 | 35x |
| 68 | Ukraine | Oleksandr Kostyljev | s1mple | Counter-Strike: Global Offensive | $1,751,689 | 241x |
| 69 | Russian Federation | Pavel Khvastunov | 9pasha | Dota 2 | $1,727,185 | 124x |
| 70 | Canada | Russel Van Dulken | Twistzz | Counter-Strike: Global Offensive | $1,693,793 | 27x |
| 71 | China | Luo Siyuan | HuaHai | Arena of Valor | $1,653,762 | 33x |
| 72 | Ukraine | Vladimir Minenko | Noone | Dota 2 | $1,652,725 | 227x |
| 73 | Norway | Håvard Nygaard | rain | Counter-Strike: Global Offensive | $1,633,216 | 26x |
| 74 | Russian Federation | Denis Sharipov | electroNic | Counter-Strike: Global Offensive | $1,615,392 | 116x |
| 75 | Denmark | Anas El-Abd | Anas | Fortnite | $1,593,228 | 20x |
| 76 | United States of America | Tyler Pharris | aBeZy | Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War | $1,586,906 | 27x |
| 77 | Korea (the Republic of) | Lee Sang Hyeok | Faker | League of Legends | $1,570,298 | 44x |
| 78 | China | Ren Yangwei | old eLeVeN | Dota 2 | $1,568,475 | 31x |
| 79 | United States of America | Christopher Lehr | Simp | Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War | $1,545,578 | 26x |
| 80 | Norway | Emil Bergquist Pedersen | Nyhrox | Fortnite | $1,543,146 | 25x |
| 81 | Denmark | Marcus Hoelgaard | Ace | Dota 2 | $1,533,517 | 19x |
| 82 | China | Zhang Zhicheng | LaNm | Dota 2 | $1,529,401 | 30x |
| 83 | China | Peng, Yunfei | Fly | Arena of Valor | $1,513,018 | 30x |
| 84 | China | Wang, Tianlong | Alan | Arena of Valor | $1,508,589 | 30x |
| 85 | Denmark | Rasmus Fillipsen | MiSeRy | Dota 2 | $1,503,372 | 19x |
| 86 | China | Zeng Jiaoyang | Ori | Dota 2 | $1,464,227 | 29x |
| 87 | China | Du Peng | Monet | Dota 2 | $1,459,216 | 29x |
| 88 | Russian Federation | Denis Sigitov | Larl | Dota 2 | $1,448,905 | 104x |
| 89 | France | Dan Madesclaire | apEX | Counter-Strike: Global Offensive | $1,445,881 | 34x |
| 90 | United States of America | Ian Porter | C6 | Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | $1,417,093 | 24x |
| 91 | Poland | Michał Kamiński | Kami | Fortnite | $1,415,519 | 62x |
| 92 | Germany | Adrian Trinks | FATA | Dota 2 | $1,410,552 | 24x |
| 93 | China | Lu Chao | Fenrir | Dota 2 | $1,406,042 | 28x |
| 94 | Russian Federation | Vladimir Nikogosyan | RodjER | Dota 2 | $1,403,436 | 101x |
| 95 | China | Zhong, Letian | 1dao | Arena of Valor | $1,395,174 | 28x |
| 96 | United States of America | Alec Sanderson | Arcitys | Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War | $1,394,679 | 23x |
| 97 | China | Zhang Pan | Mu | Dota 2 | $1,390,712 | 27x |
| 98 | China | Zhu Bocheng | paraboy | PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS Mobile | $1,386,382 | 27x |
| 99 | Sweden | Aydin Sarkohi | iNsania | Dota 2 | $1,380,870 | 30x |
| 100 | Sweden | Michael Vu | miCKE | Dota 2 | $1,376,447 | 29x |
Which esport star has the highest Instagram earning potential?
We found that Bugha (Kyle Giersdorf) has the highest Instagram earning potential, compared to his fellow esports stars.
Since winning the Fortnite World Cup in 2019, he has amassed over 4.5 million followers on Instagram, meaning that he has the potential to earn around £19,780 per sponsored post.
By posting just one sponsored post per month, we predict that Bugha could earn a whopping £237,000 per year.
Ranking in second is s1mple (Oleksandr Kostyljev), who has 1.6 million followers on Instagram. With potential earnings of £6,880 per post, we predict his total earnings could reach £82,500 over the course of a year.
Taking third place is Faker (Lee Sang Hyeok) with 1.5 million Instagram followers. With a sponsored instagram post worth £6,450, we predict that his annual earnings could reach £77,400.
The Esports Instagram Rich List
| Ranking | Player Name | Player ID | Instagram Handle | Number of followers | Earning potential (per post) | Earning potential per year (based on 1 post per month) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kyle Giersdorf | Bugha | @bugha | 4,600,000 | £19,780 | £237,360 |
| 2 | Oleksandr Kostyljev | s1mple | @s1mpleo | 1,600,000 | £6,880 | £82,560 |
| 3 | Lee Sang Hyeok | Faker | @faker | 1,500,000 | £6,450 | £77,400 |
| 4 | Zhu Bocheng | paraboy | @paraboy_balabala | 343,000 | £1,475 | £17,699 |
| 5 | Nicolai Reedtz | dev1ce | @devveking | 305,000 | £1,312 | £15,738 |
| 6 | Denis Sharipov | electroNic | @electronicsgo | 302,000 | £1,299 | £15,583 |
| 7 | Johan Sundstein | N0tail | @og_n0tail | 275,000 | £1,183 | £14,190 |
| 8 | Emil Bergquist Pedersen | Nyhrox | @nyhrox | 220,000 | £946 | £11,352 |
| 9 | Russel Van Dulken | Twistzz | @twistzzcs | 209,000 | £899 | £10,784 |
| 10 | Artour Babaev | Arteezy | @arteezyarteezy | 204,000 | £877 | £10,526 |
| 11 | Amer Al-Barkawi | Miracle- | @nigmamiracle | 203,000 | £873 | £10,475 |
| 12 | Ian Porter | C6 | @iancrimsix | 198,000 | £851 | £10,217 |
| 13 | Shane Cotton | EpikWhale | @epikwhale | 192,000 | £826 | £9,907 |
| 14 | Roman Kushnarev | RAMZES666 | @ramzes | 181,000 | £778 | £9,340 |
| 15 | Sébastien Debs | Ceb | @ceb_dota | 169,000 | £727 | £8,720 |
| 16 | Lukas Rossander | gla1ve | @gla1ve_csgo | 147,000 | £632 | £7,585 |
| 17 | Sumail Hassan | SumaiL | @ssumayl | 145,000 | £624 | £7,482 |
| 18 | Peter Rasmussen | dupreeh | @itsdupreeh | 139,000 | £598 | £7,172 |
| 19 | Håvard Nygaard | rain | @faze_raincs | 136,000 | £585 | £7,018 |
| 20 | Topias Taavitsainen | Topson | @topson.gg | 133,000 | £572 | £6,863 |
| 21 | Dan Madesclaire | apEX | @apexcsgo | 124,000 | £533 | £6,398 |
| 22 | Andreas Højsleth | Xyp9x | @xyp9x | 112,000 | £482 | £5,779 |
| 23 | Finn Andersen | karrigan | @karrigancsgo | 112,000 | £482 | £5,779 |
| 24 | Emil Reif | Magisk | @magiskcsgo | 111,000 | £477 | £5,728 |
| 25 | Jesse Vainikka | JerAx | @iamjerax | 99,700 | £429 | £5,145 |
| 26 | Roman Fominok | Resolut1on | @resolut1on | 95,100 | £409 | £4,907 |
| 27 | Alexander Khertek | TORONTOTOKYO | @torontotokyo17 | 75,800 | £326 | £3,911 |
| 28 | Miroslaw Kolpakov | Mira | @miradota | 70,300 | £302 | £3,627 |
| 29 | Magomed Khalilov | Collapse | @collapse1221 | 67,200 | £289 | £3,468 |
| 30 | Tal Aizik | Fly | @talflyaizik | 62,300 | £268 | £3,215 |
| 31 | Andreas Nielsen | Cr1t | @cr1tdota | 62,200 | £267 | £3,210 |
| 32 | Aleksey Berezin | Solo | @solo322 | 61,900 | £266 | £3,194 |
| 33 | Clement Ivanov | Puppey | @puppeydota | 59,100 | £254 | £3,050 |
| 34 | Anas El-Abd | Anas | @anasfnbr | 57,400 | £247 | £2,962 |
| 35 | Vladimir Minenko | Noone | @volodymyr | 55,300 | £238 | £2,853 |
| 36 | Maroun Merhej | GH | @nigmagh_ | 52,700 | £227 | £2,719 |
| 37 | Kuro Takhasomi | KuroKy | @nigmakuroky | 44,100 | £190 | £2,276 |
| 38 | Clinton Loomis | Fear | @feardoota51 | 43,700 | £188 | £2,255 |
| 39 | Anathan Pham | ana | @ana_than99 | 43,300 | £186 | £2,234 |
| 40 | Gustav Magnusson | s4 | @s4dota | 42,400 | £182 | £2,188 |
| 41 | Tyler Pharris | aBeZy | @tylerabezy | 41,200 | £177 | £2,126 |
| 42 | Yaroslav Naidenov | Miposhka | @miposhqa | 40,100 | £172 | £2,069 |
| 43 | Christopher Lehr | Simp | @simpchris | 34,300 | £147 | £1,770 |
| 44 | Aliwi Omar | w33 | @w33haadota | 34,200 | £147 | £1,765 |
| 45 | Ludwig Wåhlberg | Zai | @ludwugwahlberg | 34,000 | £146 | £1,754 |
| 46 | Vladimir Nikogosyan | RodjER | @rodjer_champ | 33,100 | £142 | £1,708 |
| 47 | Peter Dager | ppd | @peterpandam | 31,000 | £133 | £1,600 |
| 48 | Alec Sanderson | Arcitys | @arcitys9 | 29,000 | £125 | £1,496 |
| 49 | Saahil Arora | UNiVeRsE | @arora.saahil | 16,800 | £72 | £867 |
| 50 | Denis Sigitov | Larl | @larldota | 15,900 | £68 | £820 |
Which esport tournaments have paid the most?
The esport tournament with the largest prize pool was ‘The International 2021’, standing at over $40 million. The tournament saw 90 players, across 18 teams compete in the game Dota 2.
We found that the annual ‘TI’ tournament has consistently ranked as having a high paying prize pool, with 7 of the tournaments ranking in the top 10 highest paying esport tournaments.
Top 20 esports tournament prize pools
| Ranking | Tournament | Prize Pool | Game |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The International 2021 | $40,018,400 | Dota 2 |
| 2 | The International 2019 | $34,330,069 | Dota 2 |
| 3 | The International 2018 | $25,532,177 | Dota 2 |
| 4 | The International 2017 | $24,687,919 | Dota 2 |
| 1 | The International 2021 | $40,018,400 | Dota 2 |
| 2 | The International 2019 | $34,330,069 | Dota 2 |
| 3 | The International 2018 | $25,532,177 | Dota 2 |
| 4 | The International 2017 | $24,687,919 | Dota 2 |
| 5 | The International 2016 | $20,770,460 | Dota 2 |
| 6 | The International 2022 | $18,930,256 | Dota 2 |
| 7 | The International 2015 | $18,429,613 | Dota 2 |
| 8 | Fortnite World Cup Finals 2019 - Solo | $15,287,500 | Fortnite |
| 9 | Riyadh Masters 2023 | $15,120,000 | Dota 2 |
| 10 | Fortnite World Cup Finals 2019 - Duo | $15,100,000 | Fortnite |
| 11 | The International 2014 | $10,931,103 | Dota 2 |
| 12 | Honor of Kings International Championship 2022 | $10,000,000 | Arena of Valor |
| 13 | Honor of Kings International Championship 2023 | $9,747,684 | Arena of Valor |
| 14 | Honor of Kings World Champion Cup 2021 | $7,742,070 | Arena of Valor |
| 15 | PGI.S 2021 Main Event | $7,068,071 | PLAYERUNKNOWN’S BATTLEGROUNDS |
| 16 | LoL 2018 World Championship | $6,450,000 | League of Legends |
| 17 | LoL 2016 World Championship | $5,070,000 | League of Legends |
| 18 | LoL 2017 World Championship | $4,946,969 | League of Legends |
| 19 | Honor of Kings World Champion Cup 2020 | $4,606,400 | Arena of Valor |
| 20 | Call of Duty League Championship 2020 | $4,600,000 | Call of Duty: Modern Warfare |
If you enjoy gaming, and want to take your skills to the next level, watching esport tournaments can be a fun way to pick up tips and tricks, as well as adopt different strategies and techniques.
If you’re interested in watching any upcoming tournaments, a calendar of events can be found here.
Sources
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Statista - statista.com
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Esports earnings - esportsearnings.com
All currency figures listed in US Dollars
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